Allotments

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the value of allotments to communities and individuals.

Baroness Hanham: The Government recognise the benefits that allotments can bring to the community. Allotments are valuable green spaces and community assets that provide opportunities for people to grow their own produce as part of the long-term promotion of environmental sustainability, health and well-being, community cohesion and social inclusion.

Allotments

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to change the duty of local authorities to provide allotments; and, if so, whether they have assessed the impact on the number of allotments available to rent.

Baroness Hanham: We have no intention of removing statutory protections for allotments and, as such, we have no plans to remove local authorities' statutory duties to provide allotments.

Armed Forces: Accommodation

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many of the rooms at RAF Cranwell are en-suite for (a) officers, (b) officer cadets, (c) warrant officers and sergeants, and (d) other ranks.

Lord Astor of Hever: The en-suite rooms available for personnel at RAF Cranwell are detailed in the following table:
	
		
			  En-Suite Rooms Available at RAF Cranwell 
			 Officers 342 
			 Officer Cadets 0 
			 Warrant Officers and Sergeants 0 
			 Other Ranks 96

Armed Forces: Homecoming

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they decided not to hold a homecoming parade for the Royal Irish Rangers.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government, for each of the past four years, what regiments with complements of over a thousand have returned from Afghanistan and have not had a homecoming event held in their honour.

Lord Astor of Hever: The Ministry of Defence deploys Brigades formed of light role battle groups which comprise some 600 personnel. In the past four years some 60 battle groups have deployed and recovered from Afghanistan all of which have participated in some form of homecoming event.
	The 1st Battalion, the Royal Irish Regiment has recently attended three homecoming parades in Newport, Market Drayton and Shrewsbury near to their home base in Tern Hill, Shropshire.
	A service of thanksgiving in St Anne's Cathedral, Belfast, is planned for 22 May to remember, to give thanks and to mark the return of the 1st Battalion, the Royal Irish Regiment, along with various other events in Northern Ireland throughout May and June. Ministry of Defence officials are discussing with Belfast City Council and other parties how best to mark the commitment of both the Royal Irish Regiment and the Irish Guards in a way that gives appropriate recognition for their tremendous bravery and achievement in Southern Afghanistan.

Banking: Cheque Guarantee Cards

Lord Walton of Detchant: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they will take in response to the decision by the United Kingdom banking industry to withdraw cheque guarantee cards from the end of June 2011, and to end the facility of obtaining cash at post offices on presentation of such cards.

Lord Sassoon: The withdrawal of cheque guarantee facilities is a matter for the banks which are members of the guarantee scheme. The Payment Council has stated that the decision has been driven by a decline in the use of the scheme and that leaving the scheme to wither on the vine is likely to lead to confusion, potentially exposing more customers to the risk of fraud.
	This does not mean the end of cheques, as customers will still be able to write cheques and businesses will be able to accept them.
	The withdrawal of the cheque guarantee card scheme has no bearing on the ability to withdraw cash using bank cards, either at the Post Office or elsewhere.

Benefits

Lord Morris of Manchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government what response they have had to their proposed cut in the mobility component of the disability living allowance paid to people in residential care.

Lord Freud: The Government received a great deal of feedback on the proposal, announced in the spending review, to withdraw the mobility component of disability living allowance (DLA) from people in residential care homes after 28 days.
	In response to the concerns raised by individuals and organisations, we announced that we would not remove the DLA mobility component from people in residential care from October 2012. We will be considering the needs of care home residents alongside all other DLA recipients.

Consumer Prices Index

Lord German: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to refine the methodology for the Consumer Prices Index to ensure that it is a suitable measure of inflation for the uprating of thresholds, benefits and pension rights.

Lord Sassoon: Both HM Treasury and the Bank of England are members of the Consumer Prices Advisory Committee (CPAC) that advises the United Kingdom Statistical Authority on improvements to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), recommended by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
	The Chancellor has supported refining the methodology for the CPI so that it includes housing costs. The Office for National Statistics, along with the national statistical offices of other European member states, is working with the Statistical Office of the European Communities (Eurostat) to assess the most appropriate approach for including an index of owner-occupier housing costs in the CPI in the future.
	The work plans agreed at each CPAC meeting and the annual report are published by the ONS on its website.

Cornwall: Stannary Law

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in a legal context, what is the status of stannary law in Cornwall.

Lord McNally: Cornwall is subject to UK legislation. While the body of stannary customary law has not been systematically repealed, it is likely that such customary law has been superseded by modern legislation.

Criminal Records Bureau

Lord Tebbit: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Wallace of Saltaire on 26 April (WA 25), what are the criteria by which Capita is referred to as the private sector partner of the Criminal Records Bureau rather than a contractor.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Wallace of Saltaire on 26 April (WA 25), whether all work carried out for the Criminal Records Bureau by Capita is conducted within the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The Criminal Records Bureau's (CRB) was specifically let as a Public Private Partnership (PPP). This is defined by the European Commission as "a partnership between the public sector and the private sector for the purpose of delivering a project or a service traditionally provided by the public sector" (EC Guidelines for successful Public-Private Partnerships, 2003) and also as "forms of co-operation between public authorities and the world of business which aims to ensure the funding, construction, renovation, management or maintenance of an infrastructure or the provision of a service" (Green Paper on Public-Private Partnerships and Community Law on Public Contracts and Concessions (COM 2004)327), 2004).
	Not all work that Capita carries out for the ORB is conducted within the United Kingdom; some work is undertaken in India. Applicant's personal data are scanned and the images from the application form are encrypted and sent by secure electronic link to Capita India. Staff key in the data from each image, check for accuracy and send the data to the ORB before deleting it from their systems.

Duchy of Cornwall

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the constitutional position of the Duchy of Cornwall.

Lord McNally: The Duchy of Cornwall is a private estate that funds the public, charitable and private activities of the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry.

Energy: Wind Turbines

Baroness Knight of Collingtree: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the cost to public funds of the installation and maintenance of wind turbines; and what proportion are fully utilised.

Lord Marland: The generation of electricity by wind turbines in the UK is supported through the renewables obligation (RO) according to how much they generate. This support has been classified as tax and spend by the Office for National Statistics. Wind generation does not generally receive capital support, ie upfront support in the construction period before operation commences.
	According to table B1 in Appendix 3 of Ofgem's Renewables Obligation: Annual Report 2009-10, 7,237,999 renewable obligation certificates (ROCs) were issued to onshore wind farms in 2009-10, and 2,716,787 to offshore wind farms. The value of a ROC in 2009-10 according to this report was £52.36. This implies a total cost of RO support to wind farms in 2009-10 of around £520 million.
	The generation of electricity from wind farms varies according to the speed of the wind. Average wind speed varies by location and from day to day, and from year to year. The proportion of maximum output that UK wind farms have generated on average over past years, known as the load factor, is presented below (taken from the Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics 2010).
	
		
			 Extract from DUKES Table 7.4 Load factors on an unchanged configuration basis (per cent) (1) 
			  1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 
			 Onshore wind 30.9 30.5 29.1 25.6 28.4 26.2 29.2 28.1 26.7 27.3 29.4 26.9 
			 Offshore wind (from 2006 only) .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 27.5 28.3 34.9 33.7 
		
	
	(1) Load factor on an unchanged configuration basis is defined as:
	(Electricity generated during the year (kWh)) divided by (Installed capacity of wind farms operating throughout the year with an unchanged configuration (kW) times the\umber of hours in a year).

Forced Marriage

Lord Lester of Herne Hill: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to aid victims of forced marriages to determine and regularise their marital status.

Lord McNally: The Forced Marriage (Civil Protection) Act 2007 implemented in November 2008 provides greater protection for those at risk, preventing forced marriage and enabling courts to make orders to protect victims. While the Act cannot end a forced marriage that has already taken place, there is existing legislation to end a forced marriage under Section 11 (Void), and Section 12 (Voidable), of the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973.
	A marriage can be annulled by a court if it can be proved that the marriage was either void or voidable.
	A void marriage is one where, although the parties have been through a ceremony of marriage, they have never acquired the status of husband or wife owing to the presence of some impediment (ie the marriage could not legally have taken place). A marriage can be void for several reasons including where either party is under the age of 16, as may apply in a forced marriage case.
	A voidable marriage is a marriage which is legally valid when entered into but which may be subject to subsequent annulment by a court if a party to the marriage challenges its validity. In the absence of such a challenge a voidable marriage remains valid. A marriage can be voidable for several reasons including in cases where either party did not validly consent to the marriage, whether in consequence of duress, mistake, unsoundness of mind or otherwise. In a voidable annulment based on lack of consent due to duress, the party applying would have to prove to the court that there was sufficient fear or pressure to override their true intent. This is regularly used by victims of forced marriages.
	In partnership with other government agencies, such as the Forced Marriage Unit, we are continuing to raise awareness of forced marriage among communities and practitioners through community engagement and outreach programmes and to provide support to victims of forced through the ongoing provision of the Forced Marriage Unit's national helpline. The Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) cannot provide legal advice, but signposts victims to suitable advice and support. This includes the organisation resolution, who have established a specialist accreditation scheme for legal professionals which includes forced marriage and honour-based violence.

Government Departments: Staff

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many staff are employed in the Behavioural Insights Team based in the Cabinet Office.

Lord Taylor of Holbeach: The Behavioural Insights Team has seven members of staff and a director.

Government Departments: Staff

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many units or teams, in addition to the Behavioural Insights Team, have been set up in the Cabinet Office since 12 May 2010; and what they are.

Lord Taylor of Holbeach: The majority of units in the Cabinet Office have been created or restructured since 12 May 2010 to reflect the priorities of the Government. Details of all Cabinet Office units and teams are published in the Cabinet Office organogram which is available on the Cabinet Office website (http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/resource-library/structure-charts-cabinet-office). A copy of the organogram will also be placed in the Libraries of the House. An updated version is due to be published shortly.
	Key changes include the creation of the Office of Civil Society, the establishment of a Deputy Prime Minister's Office, the formation of the Efficiency and Reform Group, the creation of the Political and Constitutional Reform Group and the creation of the National Security Secretariat.

Gypsies and Travellers

Baroness Whitaker: To ask Her Majesty's Government what subjects the cross-governmental ministerial level group on Gypsies and Travellers has discussed; and what have been its decisions.

Baroness Hanham: The Ministerial Working Group on preventing and tackling inequalities experienced by Gypsies and Travellers is looking at ways to address issues which have an adverse impact on these communities including
	better engagement between Gypsies and Travellers and service providers;a community-led promotion of small privately owned site development;identifying ways to improve health outcomes;a community-led proposal to raise Gypsy and Traveller educational aspirations and encourage greater parental engagement and support for children to remain in the education system;better access and engagement with employment and benefits services; andimproving access to financial products and services.
	The Ministerial Working Group will provide a progress report to the Cabinet Committee on Home Affairs in the summer.

Law Reform: Civil Litigation Costs

Baroness Masham of Ilton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of their proposals to reform civil litigation costs on the damages received by seriously injured victims of road traffic accidents.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the implications for road accident victims' access to justice of the proposed legislation reforming civil litigation costs.

Lord McNally: Reforming Civil Litigation Funding and Costs in England and Wales-Implementation of Lord Justice Jackson's Recommendations: The Government Response was published on 29 March 2011, setting out the way forward on the proposals following full consultation. An updated impact assessment was published alongside this response.

Law Reform: Civil Litigation Costs

Baroness Masham of Ilton: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they intend to introduce legislation on civil litigation costs.

Lord McNally: Reforming Civil Litigation Funding and Costs in England and Wales-Implementation of Lord Justice Jackson's Recommendations: The Government Response was published on 29 March 2011, setting out the way forward on the proposals following full consultation.
	As indicated in the response, changes to the conditional fee agreement regime requiring primary legislation will follow as soon as parliamentary time allows. Other changes will require amendments to the Civil Procedure Rules or other secondary legislation. Further consultation will follow in due course, as appropriate. It is envisaged that the reforms will be implemented together, once the legislation is enacted, aside from the reversal of Carver v BAA and increases to recoverable fees for litigants in person, which can be taken forward independently more swiftly.

Law Reform: Civil Litigation Costs

Baroness Masham of Ilton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what impact assessment has been carried out to evaluate the effect on accident victims of the proposed change whereby a claimant will have to deduct their lawyers' success fee from their compensation award.

Lord McNally: Reforming Civil Litigation Funding and Costs in England and Wales-Implementation of Lord Justice Jackson's Recommendations: The Government Response was published on 29 March 2011, setting out the way forward on the proposals following full consultation. An updated impact assessment was published alongside this response.

Party Conferences: Costs

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Neville-Jones on 22 March (WA 155), whether any application has been received or is expected from the South Yorkshire Police to contribute towards the policing costs of the Liberal Democrat spring conference 2011 in Sheffield.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: An application for special grant has been received from South Yorkshire Police with regards to the Liberal Democrat spring conference 2011 in Sheffield. It is currently being considered under special grant criteria.

Plastic Bags

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress has been made since 11 May 2010 on reducing plastic bag usage (a) in supermarkets, and (b) as a whole; what policy changes have taken place; and what action they are proposing to take in the coming year.

Lord Henley: No estimation has been made since May 2011 as annual figures estimating the amount of carrier bags used are produced on a May-to-May basis. Retailers will submit their annual data to the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) after May 2011. The aggregated data will be published later in the year.
	There have been no changes to the existing policy on single-use carrier bags. Future policy on this subject is being considered as part of the waste review which is due to report in June.

Police: Expenditure Cuts

Lord Rosser: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Lord Wallace of Saltaire on 15 March (Official Report, col. 131), what is their definition of police "front-line positions".

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: HMIC's report Demanding Times published on 30 March provides a definition of frontline, middle office and back office police functions. A copy of the report is available at: http://www.hmic. gov.uk/SiteCollectionDocuments/Thematics/THM_20110330.pdf.
	Full details of policing roles and their categorisation by frontline, middle office and back office appear on page 19 of the report.

Police: Special Constables

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many special constables there are in London; and what is their estimate for the number in (a) 2012-13, (b) 2013-14, (c) 2014-15, and (d) 2015-16.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: There were 4,023 special constables (headcount) in the City of London and Metropolitan police force areas on 30 September 2010. Estimates for the number of special constables for 2012-13, 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16 are not available centrally.

Political Lobbyists

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how they are progressing with statutory regulation of political lobbyists to include a registry of declaration of relevant interests, in order to ensure greater transparency.

Lord McNally: The Government plan to carry out a wide-ranging consultation later this year and then to bring forward legislation in the second Session of this Parliament.

Portugal: Financial Support

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Government of Portugal since being made aware that Portugal would be applying for a bail-out loan.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the European Central Bank since being made aware that Portugal would be applying for a bail-out loan.

Lord Sassoon: Ministers and officials have discussions with a wide variety of international partners as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such discussions.

Regional Stock Exchanges

Baroness Randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there are any plans to encourage the establishment of one or more regional stock exchanges as part of their policies to stimulate the economies of the nations and regions of the United Kingdom.

Lord Sassoon: The Government have no plans to encourage the establishment of regional stock exchanges. Respondents to the 2010 Green Paper Financing a Private Sector Recovery did not favour their introduction, citing concerns over the liquidity of such exchanges.
	The local growth White Paper sets out the Government's approach to encouraging growth at a local level. Furthermore, the British Bankers' Association Business Finance Taskforce has announced a £2.5 billion business growth fund for established companies with strong growth potential. This fund will operate through a network of regional offices, providing between £2 million and £10 million of equity finance per transaction. The fund is on track for its official launch in May 2011 .

Schools: Charitable Status

Lord Willis of Knaresborough: To ask Her Majesty's Government what requirements need to be met for a private school to receive charitable status.

Lord Taylor of Holbeach: Part 1 of the Charities Act 2006 (the Act) provides the definition of a charity in England and Wales. In order to be a charity, an organisation must be subject to the jurisdiction of the High Court, be established for charitable purposes only, and its purposes must be for the public benefit. The Act provides a non-exhaustive list of descriptions of charitable purposes, but does not provide a statutory definition of public benefit, instead relying on the existing common law meaning of public benefit. Furthermore, the Act removed the presumption that charities established for the advancement of education were for the public benefit.
	The Charity Commission has published guidance on the requirements of charitable status, including on charitable purposes and public benefit. The legal basis of the Charity Commission's guidance on public benefit is currently subject to a reference made by the Attorney-General to the Upper Tribunal (Tax and Chancery), inviting it to clarify the law that underpins the guidance. The Upper Tribunal hearing is due later this month.

Schools: Free Schools

Lord Willis of Knaresborough: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions have been held with private sector providers for the establishment of for-profit "free schools".

Lord Hill of Oareford: As a matter of government policy, free schools are established as charitable trusts and cannot operate for profit. Therefore no discussions have been entered into.

Schools: Race Equality

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what evidential factors were considered when assessing the race equality impact of the current Education Bill.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The Government considered a wide range of evidence in developing the policies reflected in the Education Bill and in considering their impact on race equality. The equality impact assessment, published at the time of the introduction of the Education Bill, summarises these factors. It draws on data from the national pupil database and from the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England, on studies based on those data, and on independent reports, such as the Equality and Human Rights Commission report How fair is Britain?

Schools: Race Equality

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what evidence exists and is used to assess the race equality impact for black pupils attending academies.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The department published an equalities impact assessment for the academies programme in 2010. It included an assessment of the intake to academies by ethnic group and an assessment of the Key Stage 4 results of pupils by ethnic group. The equalities impact assessment is available at: http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/pupilsupport/inclusionandlearnersupport/inclusion/equalityand diversity/x0063621/equality-impact-assessments-carried-out-since-may-2010.

Schools: Race Equality

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish the available evidence for under-achieving in education by black pupils in academies and in other schools.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The department published an equalities impact assessment for the academies programme in 2010. Please see the link to the current assessment below: http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/ pupilsupport/inclusionandlearnersupport/inclusion/equalityanddiversity/a0063621/equality-impact-assessments-carried-out-since-may-2010.
	In December 2010, the department published a Statistical First Release titled GCSE and Equivalent Attainment by Pupil Characteristics in England, 2009-10. The publication can be downloaded from the department's website at: http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/ SFR/s000977/index.shtml.
	A detailed breakdown of the national results for each cohort between 2006 and 2010 by ethnic group and by other pupil characteristics is available in the Excel version of table 1 in this publication, and is available from the same departmental webpage: http://www.education.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000977/SFR37_2010.xls.

Schools: Race Equality

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish the available evidence of the number of exclusions for black pupils attending academies compared to other schools.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The department published an equalities impact assessment for the academies programme in 2010. It included a comparison of the exclusion rates in academies and other schools by ethnic group.
	Below is the link to the equalities impact assessment on the department for Education website: http://www. education.gov.uk/schools/pupilsupport/inclusion andlearnersupport/inclusion/equalityanddiversity/a0063621/equality-impact-assessments-carried-out-since-may-2010.

South Wales Police

Baroness Randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimates they have made of the additional costs to South Wales Police of policing major events in Cardiff and VIP visits to the city.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: No estimates have been made in relation to the additional costs to South Wales Police of policing major events in Cardiff. Such a request has not been received by South Wales Police Authority. As part of their budget processes, police forces are expected to make reasonable provision for normal expenditure and to set aside provision or reserves for exceptional circumstances.

South Wales Police

Baroness Randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have received any requests from the Welsh Assembly Government for an increase in funding for South Wales Police in recognition of their role in policing Cardiff.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: No such requests have been received from the Welsh Assembly Government.

South Wales Police

Baroness Randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will reassess the funding formula applied to South Wales Police in recognition of their additional responsibilities for policing Cardiff.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: The Department for Communities and Local Government led on an overarching consultation in the summer of 2010 on technical improvements to the means by which funding is allocated to all local authorities. This included the Police Allocation Formula or PAF, which is used to calculate funding to police authorities.
	There are currently no plans to reassess the formula further.

Sport: Motorsport

Lord Rooker: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether agreement has been reached with the motorsport industry regarding continued access to Forestry Commission land for events.

Lord Henley: The Forestry Commission and Motorsports Association have a Great Britain-wide agreement for the holding of motor sports events on the Forestry Commission estate. This has recently been extended by mutual consent for a further 12 months.

UK Trade and Investment: Wales

Baroness Randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what resources UK Trade and Investment are currently putting towards the promotion of Wales throughout the world; and what resources have been devoted to this in each of the past 10 years.

Lord Green of Hurstpierpoint: The devolved Administrations, of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and the UK Government have concurrent responsibility to promote international trade and inward investment.
	UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) has the lead UK responsibility for the provision of support and assistance to new and existing exporters and outward investors both at home and overseas and for promoting the whole of the UK and all its constituent parts to foreign investors.
	The devolved Administrations are funded individually and are responsible for devising and implementing additional programmes to meet the particular needs of their companies and for promoting Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to foreign investors.
	UKTI makes no provision to allocate a specific budget for the promotion of Wales or any other specific area of the UK.

UK Trade and Investment: Wales

Baroness Randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether UK Trade and Investment has had any contact with Cardiff Council or with Cardiff Business Partnership since the findings of the research by Cardiff Business School in conjunction with Cardiff Business Partnership were published on workers' assessments of the attractiveness of Cardiff as a place to work.

Lord Green of Hurstpierpoint: According to records kept by UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) on its electronic records storage and management system, Matrix, and on its customer relationship management (CRM) system, there has been no contact between UKTI and Cardiff Council or Cardiff Business Partnership.